Do you need help with transport to get to your medical appointment?

Transcription

1 Do you need help with transport to get to your medical appointment? This booklet tells you about services in the Northern Rivers that either provide, or can help you find non-emergency health transport to get to your GP, specialist or hospital. In an emergency always dial 000. Northern Rivers Health Transport Directory 2013

3 Community Transport Organisations (CTOs) CTOs can provide transport to medical appointments. The service is door to door and you may travel in the organisation s own or a volunteer s vehicle. They may also organise for you to travel by taxi and some long distance trips may be in a shared vehicle. These organisations all have wheelchair accessible vehicles should you need one. CTOs assist people with mobility needs who are aged over 65 (or over 50 if Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander), people of all ages with a disability, carers of frail aged or people with a disability, and transport disadvantaged people who cannot access public transport. Call to check your eligibility. You will be asked to make a contribution if you can afford to do so. Please call the office at least three days before your appointment to make sure you can get a booking. If you are staying in hospital, let the intake person know you are using community transport, so your return trip can be arranged before you are discharged. CTOs also provide social, access and shopping trips. Northern Rivers Community Transport (NRCT) Lismore, Kyogle and Richmond Valley Local Government Areas (LGA) / Tweed, Byron & Ballina Community Transport (TBBCT) Tweed, Byron and Ballina LGAs / Clarence Community Transport Clarence Valley LGA / Aboriginal Transport All Northern Rivers CTOs have Aboriginal Transport Development Workers who can help eligible people with transport. You can request an Aboriginal driver though this cannot be guaranteed. Give them a call. 1

4 Local Options Uniting Care Casino Transport Team (UCCTT) UCCTT provides health transport to residents in Richmond Valley, Lismore and Kyogle LGAs. They provide personalised local and long distance, door to door transport. The organisation is run completely by volunteers and you would ride in a volunteer s vehicle. To use this service you must have a demonstrated need for medical transport, have no other way to get there, or be unable to use community transport. There are no set fees, but you will be asked to make a donation towards costs, usually around 1/3 of the total cost involved. Allowances are made for those with financial difficulties / Mid Richmond Neighbourhood Centre Provides door to door medical transport for residents of the lower Mid Richmond Valley, who are HACC eligible (ie frail aged or with a disability), or on a government benefit such as Parenting Payment or Newstart, who are unable to travel any other way. You need a referral to use this service. The referral may come from your GP or community health worker, etc. or you can refer yourself. Depending on your destination you may be asked for a contribution towards costs / Murwillumbah Meals on Wheels A service for the frail aged and people with a disability (ie HACC eligibility). As well as their regular meal service, Murwillumbah Meals on Wheels can assist with social transport needs. If for whatever reason community transport is unable to assist you and you need to get to a doctor or specialist they will endeavour to set you up with a volunteer driver Sisters of Charity Outreach Country Care Link Support and hospitality including transport is provided by volunteers to country people visiting Sydney for medical purposes / 2

5 Local Options LiNC LiNC is a volunteer organisation which stands for Love in the Name of Christ. It is a network of churches and service organisations. LiNC Alstonville and LiNC Lismore support residents of those areas who may not be able to access assistance through government agencies for ordinary everyday services. They can connect you with a volunteer driver to get you to local medical services. You will need to provide at least a week s notice of your appointment. Alstonville Office hours are Monday and Thursday 9.30am-1pm Lismore Office hours are Monday and Friday 9am-11am Casino Aboriginal Medical Service (CAMS) CAMS has a transport worker, so if you are a patient at this clinic, they may be able to help you with local health transport Nimbin Aged Care & Respite Service Nimbin Aged Care and Respite Service can help Aboriginal people in the Nimbin, Dunoon, The Channon and Goolmangar area with transport needs, including health transport, should Community Transport be unable to assist you DID YOU KNOW? Healthdirect Australia is a 24-hour telephone health advice line staffed by registered nurses to provide fast and simple expert advice on any health issue and what to do next. Contact Healthdirect when: someone is sick and you re not sure what to do you want expert advice about a health issue and what to do next you need to know where to find after-hours health services or pharmacies. Contact Healthdirect Australia for advice or information on health matters, 24 hours a day, seven days a week / 3

6 Local Options Mid North Coast Local Health District, Health Transport Unit (HTU) This service covers the Northern Rivers Region (ie if you live in the Tweed, Byron, Ballina, Lismore, Kyogle, Richmond Valley or Clarence Valley local government areas) as well as the Mid North Coast. The HTU can organise medical transport for you if you fit strict eligibility criteria. You must not be able to drive or have family/friends drive you, be unable to get to, or afford regular transport fares, and be unable to organise transport through any other organisation. The HTU does not have vehicles to drive you, but they may be able to organise and pay for transport for you North Coast Medicare Local Closing the Gap - Indigenous Health Outreach Worker This service provides assistance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders throughout the Northern Rivers to help you get the health care you need. The worker can help you find, organise and book transport services. They cannot drive you themselves or pay for your transport. They can help you with organising IPTAAS (See page 7). Any health worker, nurse or GP can refer you to this service or you can refer yourself / Angel Flight Australia Angel Flight Australia is a charity which coordinates non-emergency flights with volunteer pilots for medically and financially disadvantaged people. The service is free of charge. If you require medical treatments where other forms of transport are physically and emotionally taxing or unaffordable this may be the answer for you. A registered health professional such as your GP, nurse or social worker must make a request to Angel Flight on your behalf to see if you can access this service / 4

7 Chronic Care Needs NSW Cancer Council The Cancer Council Helpline can provide a range of support and assistance, including helping you to find appropriate health transport / Leukaemia Foundation If you live between Grafton and Byron Bay and have leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma or a related blood disorder, the Leukaemia Foundation can help with transport for your treatment. If you live in Tweed Shire they can refer you to another appropriate transport service. Transport is usually in the Foundation s own vehicles, with a volunteer driver. Sometimes they may provide you with a taxi voucher. There is no cost to you. The Leukaemia Foundation has accommodation centres in all major Australian cities, which you can access free of cost if you require overnight accommodation at times of treatment. Support services such as social and financial are also available / Lismore Base Hospital (LBH) Renal Unit If you receive in-centre dialysis in Lismore, Ballina or Grafton, the LBH Renal Social Worker will work with you to help you access transport through existing services. They can also help you with IPTAAS North Coast Medicare Local Closing the Gap - Care Coordination This service is here to make sure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with a chronic disease are able to access specialists and allied health professionals. Ask your health care provider to refer you to this service. Transport for health services can be provided under this program as part of your Care Plan / 5

9 TAXI to book a taxi anywhere in Australia Taxis provide door to door services. All but the smallest of taxi companies have wheelchair accessible vehicles COACH AND RAIL CountryLink Premier Motor Service Greyhound Extensive network of coaches connecting through to rail for Sydney and Brisbane. There is also a coach service from Casino to Brisbane via Lismore. Lismore to Brisbane & Sydney to Brisbane services Sydney to Brisbane SHUTTLES Brisbane to Byron Byron EasyBus John Flynn Hospital Courtesy Shuttle www. johnflynnprivate.com.au Xcede Express service from Byron Bay to Brisbane City and airport Services from Casino to Gold Coast and Brisbane, via Lismore and Byron Bay. Free park and ride shuttle service between Club Banora, Twin Towns and John Flynn Hospital. Service between Bangalow, Byron Bay and Gold Coast Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme (IPTAAS) IPTAAS provides financial assistance to help with travel and accommodation costs for people (and their carers) that need to travel long distances to access specialist treatment not available locally. You can be reimbursed for the cost of your ticket(s), or per km travel by private transport. Unless you are a Pension or Health Care Card holder you will have to make a contribution of $40. Patients travelling at least 100km each way per treatment, or at least 200km per week if you need to make several trips, are eligible to apply for IPTAAS subsidies. Application forms are available from your GP or health specialist. They can also be downloaded from the website below. The Northern NSW Local Health District IPTAAS Coordinator can be contacted on

10 PAY FOR SERVICE A range of organisations provide private, pay for service, care for the elderly and people with a disability. They assist people to continue to live at home by providing a range of services including transport. There is usually a set hourly rate for the service, plus a per km rate for travel. Here is a list of some such organisations, but an internet or phone book search will bring up more. Feros Care AT HOME: Operate across all Northern Rivers local government areas / St Carthages Community Care Operate in the Lismore, Ballina and Richmond Valley local government areas / Home Instead Lismore, Tweed, Byron and Ballina local government areas / 8 accessibility Accessible Transport in the Northern Rivers A free guide for people with mobility impairment and their carers. Order your guide over the phone or download from the website / Taxi Transport Subsidy Scheme (TTSS) If you have a severe and permanent disability you may be eligible for this subsidy, which provides for a 50% discount on the metered taxi fare, up to a maximum of $30 discount. Application forms are available from your GP / All Access Bus Rentals AAB Rentals is a bus rental company with a unique vehicle that can be configured to provide transport for 23 people in conventional seats and up to 6 people in wheelchairs /

11 Still looking? Here are some other Ideas... The Lions Club and similar organisations sometimes provide assistance to their members. lionsclubs.org.au The RSL may assist ex-service members with medical transport. Some Home and Community Care (HACC) services eg Kyogle and District Care Connections provide medical transport for their clients. The Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) has a range of transport schemes for veterans with disabilities living permanently in NSW. To find out more call , or contact your local sub-branch. DID YOU KNOW? The Ambulance Service of NSW is required to charge fees for services provided to patients. However, in many cases patients are charged at a reduced rate or are exempt from ambulance charges (eg certain pensioners). A policy sets out arrangements for fee exemptions; how to apply for a waiver of fees on the grounds of hardship and the types of circumstances that may be considered for waiver. To find out more visit and follow the links to Accounts and Fees. 9

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